The Book of the Magi
by USSManhattan
Summary: The end of the world is the beginning of making it right... a mystical book from Earth's past draws together young women from across the world... and universes. Uber-crossover fanfic project. PART 2 - Trial By Fire - Courtney's attempt to make things better for the camp may cost her... and her team... the game. Oh, and two campers might burn alive.
1. Author's Note

_Hello anyone who reads this…_

_A bit of backstory before we begin. This story started as a round robin project with a fellow cartoon nut/fanficcer screennamed "Kryten" (you can find him on ). We met each other online during the first run of Futurama, and developed fanfics for that show and numerous others. Last year, I moved to the Czech Republic for an ESL job, and I wanted a way for us to keep going and remain in contact. I proposed the fanfiction you're about to start reading. Kryten was interested at first, but after the third "episode" he lost interest in the robin and, well, any kind of fanfiction. So it was abandoned._

_However, I had put a lot of effort into it (including a full outline), and had a lot of ideas, and didn't want to see them go to waste. So, I've decided to try writing it myself on the side, just to try to let them play out. We'll see where it goes._

_Best to let you know now… this is ultimately a gigantic uber-crossover fic of female characters from shows and video games we enjoy; characters that we felt either got screwed in their product of origin or just really liked. It's a pretty disparate group; we're starting with Total Drama Island, but the characters ultimately range from such wide apart media as Daria, Steven Universe, TMNT 2012, the Battlestar Galactica remake, Star Trek: Voyager, Mass Effect and even long forgotten shows like Clone High. I also chose SU as the other category since it's the other show we'll see first, and the mythos that I'm drawing from most on the big bad and threats. So, yeah, it's very ambitious and might turn out to be a total mess. But, I had fun developing it. And if you have fun reading it… we'll continue._

_Let me know if this is worth continuing. If not, no problem. If it is… we'll go._

_And now… the Book of the Magi._


	2. Prologue: Firestorm

"It wasn't supposed to be like this." Murphy's Law victims spit it, drama queens spot it as mantra, and criminals mutter it as an oath. For Courtney Greene, the phrase had almost become a comma.

A while back, she applied to join a cast of like-aged students from across the country to appear in a new reality TV show called _Total Drama Island_. It seemed simple enough; master crazy challenges, beat your fellow contestants, take home a million dollars. Courtney was sure she would eat the others for lunch in a battle of wits and endurance. Unfortunately, the show's host was an absolute sadist who loved not only torturing his cast members, but tricking them into abusing each other. When she thought about it, though, she was one of the lucky ones. Ezekiel and that blond girl couldn't say the same, to name two extreme examples.

As for Courtney herself, the treasure lay tantalizingly out of reach every time. She'd been folded, spindled, mutilated, spooked, messed, scarred, shocked, painted… just about any other verb you could mention, and came up empty. It wasn't as bad as the emotional toll behind the scenes, though, most dramatically brought home by her supposed boyfriend kissing her newest friend. She hated Gwen for it; hated her for it for a long time. It was only in the last season that she overcame her hatred and realized how much the spunky, quiet Goth in blue and green completed her. That season had some of the best days of her life. That was also taking into account the fact that Chris seemingly became more and more sadistic and driven to destroy with every season that went by.

It also led to where she was now. The normally quiet, well mannered Mike had some serious bug up his butt, and launched an all out attack on their relationship to secure him a spot in the finale. Courtney was always competitive and highly strung; she could admit that all too readily now. But she fell for it, and the girls were rent asunder, going their separate ways on their own. Of course, at the end of the season…

…oh, what did it matter? The Canadian people had had enough of her after that last break-up. Her stick up the butt, self righteous attitude went from endearing to vilifying over night. Having seen Gwen pour her heart out, completely and repeatedly, to win back Courtney's respect only for the CIT to throw it back in her face one last time, had led to nothing ostracism for her since. Now she was "the most hated teenager in Canada," according to her own Montreal's tabloids. It stuck. Her family didn't want to listen to her "moaning" anymore, and even Bridgette told her coldly last week to stop calling. She didn't have much else to go on for at this point, except for this.

She wasn't exactly relishing this, standing in front of Gwen's house. She had no idea what the girl would do to her on sight of her face. But, if she was ever going to put this terrible chapter behind her… move on from all these terrible mistakes, it started with talking to the person behind this door. Steeling herself, Courtney took a deep breath, and then knocked. The seconds ticked by far longer than she wanted until the door finally opened. A boy in a backwards cap peered through the crack. His face hardened.

"You've got a lot of nerve showing up here after what you did to my sister. I wish I never talked her into going on."

"Is she here?" Courtney said weakly.

"Yeah, she is. But I really don't feel like subjecting her to you again. She was really upset after the last trick you pulled on—"

"I'm aware! I'm… aware," the CIT replied, composing herself. "I just want to talk to her about what happened, try to make it right…" The boy scoffed.

"Yeah, good luck with that," the brother said. He looked at her for awhile before sighing. "Gwen, you have a visitor," he finally relented as he walked away. Courtney rubbed her fingers together nervously, waiting. At last, Gwen's eyes appeared, still a little heavy with heart ache.

"What is… oh," Gwen said, averting her eyes.

"Gwen, look… I know I can't possibly make it good, what happened, I'm a stupid, self-obsessed fool, and Mike played me like a violin…"

"Courtney."

"…but what we had was really, really, amazing. I felt… completed in a way I don't really feel with other people; and it was so special…"

"…Courtney…"

"…and, and, I learned, Gwen. I learned that money and getting the best score isn't everything, and that friends are what really—"

"Courtney!" Gwen cried, briefly locking eyes with her. The brunette stopped talking, looking back into the watery blue orbs. They flicked away; hurt, conflicted, and resigned.

"Courtney… I think it would be best if you just left me be," the Goth said simply. "Don't come back, don't talk to me. It's just something I can't put up with anymore." Without another word, Gwen pushed the door shut, never making eye contact with Courtney.

"Gwen, no, wait! Let me finish!" Courtney pleaded, pounding on the door frantically. Something pounded back.

"If you don't leave now," an older woman's voice growled, "I will call the cops." Humbled, defeated, Courtney meekly stepped away from the door. "Keep walking," the voice added. Hanging her head, the CIT slunk away for the street. She cast her eyes skyward, immediately regretting doing so.

For the past few days, the Sun had seemed crueler somehow. It had become more intent, more visceral… more menacing. The teenager squinted her eyes shut and averted her gaze as the glare seemed to burn through even with the lids clenched shit. At least she knew it wasn't her imagination or a sense of guilt; newscasters had had astronomers commenting on the star's bizarre behavior as of late. It was defying all knowledge of how it worked, and they were as baffled as the average citizen that noticed it amid the din of everyday life.

Then came what she knew was not astronomy gone awry. It was that buzzing, rattling noise that came into her brain like a static choked radio signal. Courtney grumbled, wearily massaging her temples. She swore she could pick out a few words; gibberish, mostly. More likely than not, it was the sound of a guilty conscience trying to shame her. Feeling self-pitying enough for the day, Courtney trudged back to the bus station for the next bus to Montreal. She did her best to ignore the ever-angry Sun; she was sure it would abate within a few days.

What a difference a few days made.

The TV reporter, shell shocked as her and her family, was saying something straight out of a bad SyFy Channel movie. The Sun was undergoing some sort of… disturbance. Super powerful, scorching flares were being belched out of the star now, defying all known science and expectations. Earth was to go right through one in the next few hours, and while no one had ever seen anything like this, it was expected to be "bad" and "doubtful survivability." Numbly, Courtney wandered back to her room, sitting on her bed as she absorbed the death sentence. Her window faced over the city; she saw the bloated, reddish sun set behind the cantering tower of Olympic Stadium and the distant mountains. Outside, she heard the cries and crashes of the denizens of Montreal as their fate became more apparent… the death cries of a civilization.

Not knowing what else to do, she picked up the faded, crumbled newspaper clipping that she had been holding a lot recently, the publicity cast photo of the first season of _Total Drama Island_. Courtney sighed again.

"So many lives ruined, and where did it get us…" she muttered, stroking the picture again. "I don't know what's happened out there, and I don't know what's going to happen, but… I hope it's painless for you," Courtney added, looking down at Gwen's smiling face. The CIT's own face cracked a weak smile.

It was as if something popped within her brain. There were noises, screams, cracks, sharp distortions; a torrent of sensation. Courtney grabbed her head and cried out, thinking that it was the solar disturbances reaching out for the doomed planet.

_"…hear me? Can. You. Hear me?"_ a voice pleaded in her head. The girl blinked.

"What the…"

_"You… you can? Good! Thank goodness! I was getting worried there with all the crap going on. Look. We have very little time. You need to get to New York. Now. No time to explain. You have to go now."_

"What? Who is this?" Courtney asked, feeling that her sanity was finally gone.

_"I said, there's no time for that now! I can explain it later!"_ the voice demanded.

"You're right," Courtney replied. "There's no time; the planes are grounded, everything's gridlocked, and the Sun's about to fry the planet. And who are you, and why are you picking now of all times to give me the runaround about what I should be doing with my last moments?!" Courtney heard the voice sigh.

_"…ugh, I was afraid the flares would be coming by the time I got through to you. Fine. We'll have to do this the hard way and hope it works."_

"Do what? And why do you sound so familiar? What's going—" There was a cracking sound to her right. Courtney whirled to see a glowing blue vortex. Her scream, like her body, was sucked up before she could flinch.

New York was doing no better than Montreal in its final moments. Courtney landed on a small park somewhere in Manhattan, and around her were the crashes, screams and sirens of a public gone mad. The man who almost tripped over her didn't even acknowledge her sudden existence, content to continue his screaming; maddened like everyone else.

"How did… what did… why did!?" the petite girl sputtered.

_"I already told you! There is no time! You're just outside Bryant Park. You need to go up those stairs to your right now if you want to have any chance of undoing all this," _the voice told her.

"Undo what? The end of the freaking world?"

_"Among other things? Yes. Now shut up and do what I tell you to,"_ the voice scolded her. Courtney opened her mouth, but a glare attracted her attention. She looked to see the shimmering spire of the Chrysler Building, beginning to turn a searing white from increasing reflected sunlight. It almost blinded her. _"You going to move, or do I have to throw you?"_ Dazed from the overwhelming stimuli, Courtney dragged herself towards the stairs, getting jostled by the panicking masses around her.

"Where do you want me to go?" Courtney asked.

_"There's fine,"_ the voice told her. _"Now, hang on, it's gonna be a bit rough."_ Courtney yelped as the ground fell through around her, and she descended through the expected bedrock… and then into a vast, strange chamber.

"What's going on? Am I going there for what I did on the show?!" the girl wailed.

_"Did you recognize that building to your left a second ago?" _the voice asked. Courtney wracked her brain for her visit to New York on a previous season.

"…New York Public Library?"

_"Good girl. Here's the thing. There's a reason why the library was built where it was. It was there to keep a very, very big secret, and the architects had no idea. They had… a little subtle inspiration, you could say."_

"What the hell is going on? Will you please tell me now?!"

_"In a minute. You're going to see a book far to your right, far below you. When I tell you, I need you to run for it as if the entire world depended on it, because it does. Okay?"_

"No! I want answers!"

_"I said… okay?"_

"I… fine, yes! Yes, I'll grab the stupid book!" Courtney cried. "Not like this day could get any worse!" The piece of ground Courtney was on finally came to a stop. As it did, the small hole above her began to glow red hot, as if a giant spotlight were turning on.

_"Run, Courtney! Run, grab it now!" _the voice screamed more in fear than demanding. Courtney ran, almost tripping over her own feet in the process. The light was getting brighter now, all around her. Just as she felt a burning sensation all over her body, Courtney's fingers gripped the book. Instantly, a bubble of purple energy surrounded her as the room turned a bright, searing white. Courtney clenched her eyes and curled up on instinct. The voice within her sighed in relief.

_"Good… good, now there's hope. You can relax now, Courtney. You can't be harmed."_

"What… what was that light, that heat?" the CIT asked, panting.

_"The flares. North America just took a direct hit. The Earth is burning, I'm afraid. Everything you knew and cared about just went fwoosh. In a few minutes, you'll probably the last living thing on the planet. But as long as you hold that book, you'll be fine." _Courtney's mind reeled, trying to process what was going on.

"Am… am I supposed to be Eve or something? Are you aliens preserving me?" She paused. "Are you… God?"

"_Maybe with a small G, but there's a few of us out there," _the voice said with a chuckle. _"Or, at least… there should have been. Courtney… nothing should have happened like this. The flares, the TV show, Gwen… nothing. It was supposed to be different."_

"It wouldn't surprise me."

_"That book you're holding now? You were supposed to find it a few years ago. You and some very close friends of yours after you won _Total Drama Island_."_

"I didn't win. Owen did."

_"It was supposed to be you. And with your winnings, you treated a bunch of your friends to a trip to New York. Bridgette, Gwen, Heather, Zoey—"_

"Wait up," Courtney said. "Heather was never my friend. And Zoey didn't show up until the fourth season."

_"That's what I'm trying to say. History's been changed. The only reason you're alive right now and I'm able to talk to you is because I'm outside of time. That book you're holding is an ancient tome, full of secrets long lost to mankind. You and the gang were supposed to find it a few years ago, master it, and attract a lot more friends… and a few enemies. Enemies that didn't want to see humans rediscover that missing chapter. In my life, Courtney, the flares never happened. You, the girls, and others stopped them."_

"Then… why didn't you stop it?"

_"I'm being blocked,"_ the voice sighed. _"I couldn't see what happened. All I know is, someone tampered with the timeline, and humanity just got toasted for it. I still can't see how things went wrong, but I know when… the first season of _Total Drama Island._"_

"Oh," Courtney said, disheartened. "So, what does that mean for me… civilization… us?"

_"It means we're going to have to do this the hard way,"_ the voice continued. _"I still have a little bit of energy that can be transferred through you. Just enough for a one way trip. I'm going to send your consciousness, your memories and that book back in time to the first day of filming. Your current mind will fuse into your past body. It's up to you to figure out how history got messed up, and to set things right. Hopefully, we'll still be able to communicate once you've done a little reading and with any luck on my end."_

"Well, how would I possibly know what went wrong!?" Courtney cried. "I'm going into this as blind as you! No, blinder! At least you have special magical mind powers and stuff!"

_"All I can say, Courtney, is that you need to be aware of anything or anyone that would set you against one another. Make enemies of the other campers. Turn you against—"_

"Chris," Courtney said in disgust.

_"Him?!"_ the voice sputtered. _"You must be joking. He was an absolute... of course. Of course."_

"What?"

_"Nothing. But I think you're onto something. Keep an eye on Chris and what he does to the campers' cohesion. I think there's more to Mr. McLean now than meets the eye. But for now, you've got a trip to complete. It's gotta be a lot slower than I'd like so you don't go mad in the process, so I recommend_ _sitting back, relaxing, and getting some of that reading done so you can hit the ground running." _With that, the vortex re-opened and claimed her again.

Courtney's screaming stopped once she stabilized herself, stopped spinning aimlessly along the ice blue corridor. Although she was going straight ahead, she couldn't escape the sensation that she was somehow falling, descending. Shaking her head, she tried to organize her thoughts. What had just become of the world? What was all that about how things should have been different? What was with this book? Who was the weird voice in her head? And why did she sound so damned familiar? Try as she could, her shaken brain couldn't form answers. Finally, Courtney gave up and turned her attention to the book that had saved her. At least that was with form, and contextual.

It was worn; looked thousands of years old. Thick, too. Courtney had the feeling she was holding a bonanza of history; something undreamed of by historians. A pity they didn't have the chance to see it before the fire came down. Well, if she was the last living trace of humanity, on a possible suicide mission to revive it, she may as well pay her respects by seeing what it was about. Slowly, tenderly, she cracked the cover open and looked at the front page.

"The Book of the Magi…"


	3. Part 1: Leap of Faith

**_Hey guys, I'm sorry to beg, but if you want this to continue, please like, follow or review so I know there's interest..._**

* * *

Courtney opened her eyes. She was on the boat, heading to Wawanakwa. It was the first season of Total Drama all over again. The crazy voice was right; she had gone back in time.

"_I'm going to die now. I'm going to frickin' die now."_

She'd hopped off the boat, the book safely stowed in her backpack. Who knows why she'd even bothered. Other than that first page, the entire book was blank. Why she'd even bothered to hold onto the damn thing, even if it helped her escape the raging inferno that was once planet Earth, was something she didn't understand. So, basically, it was worthless, and she'd been committed to five years of déjà vu, with a fiery finale.

Most of the campers were already here. Now… how did this go again? Right, shake hands with Owen, say "pleased to meet you", turn, get an eyeful of the Hawaiian superhunk… and Izzy falls off the boat and hits herself on the dock.

"Hiii, Chris! Hiiiii!"

_It hasn't happened yet_, Courtney realized. Before she even realized it, she was running down the dock.

"Hiiiiii! Hii-waaugh!" Izzy tripped, fell overboard… but this time Courtney was there to catch her before she hit her chin.

"Are you okay?" she said.

"That fellllt… GOOD! I mean, it probably wouldn't if I'd like hit my chin or something, but… oh hey, is this summer camp? Is there gonna be papier mache? Are we having lunch soon?"

"Just be more careful, all right?" Courtney said.

"Aye aye, Captain!" the quirky redhead replied. "Hey, that was cool! It was almost like you knew I was gonna fall! Are you psychic? 'Cause I totally am. Or was that psycho? One of the two."

"Um… just luck, really."

"Okay!" said Chris. "Now that we've been cheated out of our first injury, thank you SO much for that, Courtney… we need a group photo for the promo. Everyone on the end of the dock!"

_Oh, no, _Courtney thought to herself. She knew exactly what was coming up. She could warn everyone, but she'd already called attention to herself once. Avert two accidents, within less than five minutes of each other, and people might start to get really suspicious. And if they started asking questions about how she knew, it'd be the loony bin for sure. She was just going to have to endure this one. She sat down next to Bridgette, put on her best fake smile, and held her breath.

"Okay, 1… 2… 3… ooh! Okay. Forgot the lens cap! Okay, hold that pose… 1… 2… oh… no wait. Card's full. Hold on."

_Gahh, just get it over with…_

"Everyone say: 'Wawanakwa!'"

"Wawanakwa—ohh…"

The dock shook beneath them. Here it comes. Courtney inhaled and braced herself for it…

The dock collapsed beneath the campers, plunging them into the icy waters.

_It's for the mission, _Courtney reminded herself.

"Okay, guys, dry off and meet at the campfire pit in ten."

Courtney swam back to shore, wondering if she wasn't wasting her time. As it was, history was just repeating itself. At the rate things were going, she… and humanity… were toast.

* * *

And so it went; Chris assigned the campers to their teams and cabins. Courtney was in the Bass's cabin now, unpacking. Two beds over, Sadie was still moping over being assigned to a different team than her BFFL.

"But we've NEVER been apart, Courtney! We grew up together, we were in all the same classes, we took all our vacations together…"

"Sadie… it's gonna be okay. In the long run, being apart from each other will make the two of you appreciate your friendship even more. Your bond will become even stronger."

"Do… do you think so?"

"Sure. You can handle this, Sadie."

"I… I don't know."

"Just try it."

"Hey, nice save back on the dock there."

Courtney turned back to the door. Bridgette had entered, lugging her baggage and surfboard. She claimed the bed between Courtney and Sadie. "Bridgette Weinstein, Vancouver." She offered her hand.

"Courtney Greene, Montreal," Courtney replied, taking it. "I guess I was just in the right place at the right time."

"Cool. What's with the big book?"

"This? Uh, nothing, really... just a diary."

"Looks a bit old and ornate."

"It's an antique diary. It was my grandmother's. Only she never actually used it, so it's totally blank."

"Right… so… what are you playing for? You seem kinda…"

"Preppy? Yeah, I get that a lot. Well… I'm playing to pay my way through Harvard Law. That's the dream… You?"

"My dream is to surf the world. Hawaii, Australia, Big Sur, wherever I can find a wave. I figure a hundred grand'll get me where I wanna go."

"That sounds really cool, I have to admit."

"Thanks. You know… I have a good feeling about us."

Courtney forced a smile. "Me too." _If I can avoid past mistakes…_

* * *

Which brings us back to…

"Oooh… hate to see that happen."

Harold had hit the water… hard. In a tender area. And now Courtney was up.

The first time, she'd chickened out. This time things would be different. This time, she'd take the plunge. This time…

She looked down, and remembered exactly why she hadn't jumped in the first place.

"Long way down, huh?" teased Chris. "You can always chicken out… but you could cost your team the win. And then they'll HATE you."

She looked down again. There would be… other chances, right?

"Now, if you'll just take one of our fetching chicken hats…"

"YOU ONLY LIVE ONCE!" Courtney said, hurling herself off the cliff, Lake Wawanakwa rushing toward her.

"I INSTANTLY REGRET THIIIIIIII-" Courtney's shout was cut short as her front collided with the water's surface. _I would belly-flop, wouldn't I._

* * *

"Owww…" Courtney moaned, rubbing her tender belly.

"It's okay," Bridgette assured her. "They're not scoring us on style."

Eva nodded at her. "Might actually be hope for you, Princess." Was that... no, not a smile, but a slightly flatter scowl. _I'll take it._

"Yeah," Duncan added. "Didn't think you'd have the cojo-" He looked up. "Ooh, crap. I don't believe it!"

"GANGWAY!" yelled DJ as he plunged toward the waters, his cannonball raising a huge splash.

"That was probably the best cannonball ever," commented Harold.

"You made it big guy!" Tyler slapped DJ on the back.

"Well, you know… I couldn't be the only one to let the team down, could I?"

Up on the cliff, Sadie had refused to jump without Katie until Izzy had grabbed her, declared herself Acting Katie, and leapt off the cliff. History was already changing. The entire Bass team had jumped.

Of course, that was trivial compared to what needed to change.

* * *

The challenge had continued to play out differently. Beth refused to jump as before, and Katie lacked the courage to jump without Sadie. Instead of losing the opening challenge 10-9, the Bass had won, 11-9. The Gophers had gone on to lose the hot tub-building challenge, and were now headed to the campfire ceremony.

Courtney, lost in thought, walked back to the Bass cabin, not really looking where she was going…

"Hey! Watch where you're going, CIT!"

"You watch where you're-" Courtney's voice caught. _It's her._

"Sorry," Courtney said. "I'm… just getting used to all of this." She held out her hand "I'm Courtney."

Gwen smirked. "I dunno… if I got caught shaking hands with 'the enemy' …could be trouble."

"What's life without a little risk?"

"Easy for you to say… YOU'RE not facing elimination."

"It… probably won't be you?"

"I dunno. In case you haven't noticed… I'm not the friendliest person here."

"_Hey!"_

"Well, good luck, anyway. I'm rooting for you, for what that's worth"

"_Hey!"_

"Um… thanks. See you around, I hope…"

"_LISTEN!"_

"WHAT?!" Courtney snapped, irritated that the mystery voice in her head had chosen now to make itself known.

"What?"

"Uh… sorry… thought I heard someone calling me… gotta gonowbye" Courtney muttered, running for the cabin.

_Weirdo, _Gwen thought to herself as she walked away.

* * *

"What do you want from me?" Courtney demanded, finally sure she was alone. "You lead me to that worthless book as the world ends, you disappear, and now all of a sudden you're back and I look like a lunatic in front of-"

"Shut up. This is critical. You must make sure NO ONE gets eliminated tonight."

"Really? And how am I to do that?" But the voice was silent now.

She flopped down on her bed. The book lay there next to her, open. That's funny_… I thought I left it under the bed…_

What was odder was the page it was open to now had writing on it. She had been sure every page was blank, but apparently she'd missed one.

"Invisibility spell…?"

She scanned the words. It was suddenly so simple. A child could do it. A baby could do. It was so simple.

"_If you hurry, you can disrupt the ceremony,"_ the voice said.

"But I have to test it first," Courtney pleaded.

"_No time! It's got to be now!"_

* * *

"Screaming Gophers… at camp, marshmallows represent a tasty treat that you enjoy roasting by the fire. At this camp… marshmallows represent life."

Courtney hid in the bushes. _I need to get this right, _she told herself.

"You've all cast your votes and made your decision. There are only ten marshmallows on this plate. When I call your name. come up and claim your marshmallow. The camper who does not receive a marshmallow tonight must immediately return to the Dock of Shame to catch the Boat of Losers. That means you're out of the contest. And you can't come back EV-ERRRR. The first marshmallow goes to…. Trent."

He called them one by one. At last, it was down to only Katie and Beth.

"Campers… this is the final marshmallow of the evening."

_Now. _Courtney reached out with her mind, drawing a veil around the final marshmallow.

"What the hell?" Chris exclaimed, dropping the plate. "Where'd it go? It was there, but… it's… damn it! How am I supposed to do a marshmallow ceremony without marshmallows? This episode goes on air tomorrow! I don't have time to do this over!"

"You could just kick the loser off without a marshmallow," suggested Heather.

"It's not the same!" Chris whined. "Forget it! There's no elimination tonight! But next week… the challenge is gonna be extra brutal!"

The vulnerable campers breathed a sigh of relief as they filed back to the cabin, safe for a week.

_I did it, _Courtney thought to herself. Suddenly, her stomach felt like it was twisting in knots… it lasted only a few seconds, though. _I guess I should expect some kind of price for using magic._

A bell rang. "DINNER! GET YOUR BUTTS IN HERE!" bellowed Chef.

It was inedible slop, no doubt. But for some reason, Courtney didn't care. She was ravenous.

Almost as if she'd grown a second stomach…


	4. Part 2: Trial by Fire

Courtney heaved a sigh as she plopped down on the bench. It had been almost a week since she prevented Katie or Beth's elimination at the ceremony, which meant that Chris' next attempt at "fun" was imminent. The CIT's mind grappled with what the host had said after she foiled his scheme; that the challenge would be "extra brutal." Originally, it was being forced to stay awake after a huge turkey dinner, but that hardly seemed "brutal."

_"Could I have already changed history to the point where my memories don't help?" _Courtney wondered. _"That Chris is now going to do challenges that weren't done in the past? I can't very well change the future if my road map is inaccurate…"_ Courtney's musing was interrupted by the clangs of lunch trays around her.

"Hey, Court," Bridgette smiled as she sat down beside her.

"How are things, Princess," Eva added as she sat across from the two.

"_That's one way things have already changed… Eva's civil to me_," Courtney thought.

"They're okay… just… lost in thought, is all," Courtney replied.

"Better eat up," the fitness freak said. "You'll need your energy if you want to pull off what you did last week again."

"Yeah, yeah, right," Courtney nodded before digging in. She found herself going for what at least passed for meat in Chef's Breakfast Scramble Surprise.

It was strange… ever since she had pulled that little stunt with the disappearing marshmallow she had found herself eating hearty, despite the horrid gruel they were getting. Especially anything that had protein or healthy fats in it. Courtney had started to worry about her waistline after realizing what she was doing, but it was as taut as it had been when she first landed on the island. Bridgette's groan brought her back.

"Oh, uh, sorry, Bridge," Courtney mumbled as she slowed down her digging. "I forgot that you're a vegetarian."

"It's not just that," the surfer said. "It's just… how can you eat that stuff?"

"Kinda easy to do when the decision is made for you," Courtney replied. "It's all we get. It's this or starving."

"I guess," Bridgette said. "I feel like things would be a bit better around here, a bit more civil, if we got actual freaking food." Courtney's eyebrows lifted. _That was an idea…_

"Hey. Is the seat taken?"

"It is now!" Bridgette beamed. Courtney looked up to see Gwen sitting down, right across from her. The Goth was wearing that odd little smirk from their awkward encounter.

"I don't think we were formerly introduced, CIT," Gwen said. "You were kinda busy thinking people were calling for you."

"Oh, uh, yeah, uh… I'm, uh, sorry about that… usually I'm not flaky… I'm Courtney Greene, from Montreal."

"Gwen Davis from the same," the Goth replied, shaking her hand. "Odd we've never run into each other."

"Big city, different lives," Courtney shrugged. Gwen nodded, still smirking. "What?"

"Oh, nothing…"

"You still think I'm weird," Courtney said.

"Yeah, a little, but I can appreciate weird… unraveling the mystery of what causes it," Gwen answered, her forefingers teepeed beneath her lower lip. "What's your favorite book?"

"What?"

"You heard me… your favorite book."

` "Uh… it's gonna sound silly, but… I liked the _Harry Potter _series," Courtney blushed.

"Not at all, even if I prefer Tolkien," Gwen said. "You clearly appreciate the idea of there being more to the world we see."

"Well, I do like learning…" Courtney said.

"What's your favorite TV series?"

"_Star Trek_," the CIT squeaked, her cheeks bright red.

"Qapla, Princess. You just went up another notch in my book." Eva's scowl went flat.

"A good choice, but I like the darker parts over the 'humanity is gee golly perfect' crap," Gwen said. "Maybe you're not so weird after all… or you're the kinda weird I can appreciate. Her smirk subtly twisted into a sly smile. Courtney choked a little on her orange juice.

_"Holy crap… is… is Gwen… flirting with me?!"_

"Hey, are you all right?" Bridgette asked, patting Courtney on the back.

"Yeah, yeah, just, uh… some juice went down the wrong tube," Courtney said.

"_She is something, isn't she,"_ the voice suddenly said. _"Concentrate. Just think. No words. You'll look less insane."_

_**"Now you tell me," **_Courtney grunted back. _**"I could have used that a week ago."**_

_"Hey, she's talking to you, isn't she?"_

_**"…for now…"**_

_"Courtney, dear, the whole idea is to do it differently this time… and so far, you are. If she was brought to tears by you rejecting her after a long time of being a jerk… think of what may be if you're all calm and civil from Day One, hmm?"_

_**"I guess."**_

_"No guessing. Trust me on this. And for now, eat up… you'll probably need it."_

_**"Please tell me you know what's going on here."**_

_"No, but I know Chris… knowing him, it's going to suck."_

* * *

"Okay, campers…" Chris purred, marching along the ranks of miserable teenagers, "I was thinking today, we do something a little different."

"Vivisection?" Duncan growled.

"Cute, juvie boy," the host replied. "No, I was thinking we do something with more… high stakes. A bet, if you will. A bet in blood," Chris continued.

"I'd still take the viv over another day of that garbage," Duncan said. "Was that stuff taken before or after the bums digested it?"

"You talkin' bad about my cookin', punk?" Chef growled.

"Ah, c'mon, we're all sick of it," Duncan snapped back. "Right?"

"It… could be better," Beth sighed.

"Yeah, I'd say so," Tyler nodded.

"Just try some paprika, eh?" Ezekiel added. Chris scowled.

"Campers, we're missing the point here…" the host scolded. "We're here to compete, not complain about Chef's grueling gruel."

"What was that?" Chef roared. Courtney looked on, barely covering her giggles.

_"Ya like that, huh?" _The CIT closed her eyes with a weary sigh.

"_**What now."**_

_"Well, I'm glad to see you enjoying the show, but, I'm thinking you sweeten the pot."_

_**"Oh? How."**_

_"Make a bet with Chris. That if your team wins, he has to bring in catering."_

_**"Ha! That's a sucker's bet. I can tell already he'd go back on it. I've got a couple years of experience on that!"**_

_"Well, that's where your… book smarts come in. Remember your objective? You keep everyone on the island, and keep the group united. Keeping people in a good mood by giving them yummy food would go a long way towards that."_

_**"Yeah, but, there's no way Chris would let that go. Or Chef."**_

_"Chris is on the run already. He expected to be whittling the crowd down by now. And Chef's bark is nasty, but his bite…? History's already changing from how you remember it, right? Trust me. The fate of humanity is riding on this, so I fully intend this to work."_

_**"Oh, I hope so," **_Courtney sighed.

"_Good to hear. Still got your phone, right?"_

* * *

"Hey, Chris…"

"What, Courtney?" Chris asked in exasperation. "Better not be about the food."

"Sorry, but, I was thinking… how about we make this challenge a little more exciting."

"Oh?" the host asked. Courtney nodded, stepping up to the bestubbled torturer. She subtly slipped a hand into her pocket as she did so.

"Yeah. If my team wins… you replace Chef as our caterer with someone of my choice."

"What?!" the burly man roared.

"Hmmm, I could be convinced…" Chris replied, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "But, pray tell, what happens if the Gophers win?"

"I leave the show," Courtney replied. The others gasped.

"Deal," Chris said, extending his hand. The CIT hesitated before shaking his hand. Chris had a weird grin on his face, as if someone were whispering into his ear.

"Oh, and to make it more interesting… the losing team is completely eliminated."

"Hey, that's bull!" Geoff yelled.

"Rule number one, campers… don't try me," Chris smirked, winking at Courtney. "Meet up at the flagpole in ten. Harold? Gwen? Come with me…"

_**Crap**_, Courtney thought. Before she even turned around, she felt the glares drilling through her.

"Nice move, Princess," Duncan grumbled.

"We don't wanna be eliminated!" Katie and Sadie wailed.

"Guys, I didn't know, I was just trying to make things better…" Courtney pleaded.

"Yeah, well, gosh, how'd that go…?" Harold grunted as he followed Chris and Gwen. Courtney thought for the briefest moment that Gwen had a look of pity on her face before vanishing around a corner. By the time Courtney turned back, the Bass had mostly left except for Bridgette and Eva.

"You hate me now too, Bridgette?"

"No, but… you should have known that Chris would pull that kinda crap," the surfer replied. "You gotta watch out for that guy."

"I just wanted to improve things…"

"I know, but… be careful. I swear, that guy has some sorta issue…"

"So, Princess," Eva drawled, "you gotta plan?"

"Yeah. Win whatever the hell he's got cooked up."

* * *

"All right, campers, it's time for an obstacle course," Chris announced. "It seems that Harold and Gwen have somehow ended up above a sea of flames in cages. But to get there, you're gonna have to climb the mountain. Oh, and avoid all the stuff raining down thanks to a very angry cook," he added, nodding at a grinning Chef. "But hey, when you win, you'll either be better by half… or be halved. Oh, and one more thing, campers, to make it interesting? You've got to save the opposite team member. Ropes will be provided on top of the mountain, but that's about it for help. Whoever saves the other team's captive wins it all for their team. All right, have fun!"

"All right, you heard the blowhard," Courtney grumbled as she pulled her hand free of her pocket once more. "We gotta save Gwen."

"And ourselves," Geoff snarled.

"Hey, knock it off," Bridgette said. "She was trying to make things better." Geoff blushed a little at the girl's scolding.

"We need to use strategy," Courtney replied. "Eva, I think you need to take point if we encounter resistance from projectiles. DJ, you can help there too."

"Ah, man! I don't wanna get hurt!" the boy whined.

"Look, the rest of us aren't as fit as you two," Courtney said gently. "You guys can withstand Chef's bull better than the rest. And Duncan, I saw your interview video… if we run into a cliff, that's yours."

"Fair enough, captain."

"Well, if you've given me enough grief… let's go save ourselves a Goth."

* * *

_**"I can't believe I listened to the insane voice in my head," **_Courtney sighed as she trudged up the mountain. _**"Now everyone's gonna hate me."**_

_ "You really should learn to have more confidence in y-me."_

_**"How? Chris played me for a fool. And I should have known that! That's why I succumbed to all that crap with Gwen an—"**_

_"That is a dead timeline. It no longer applies. Courtney, you've got to let it go and move on. This is a whole new chance, and, if you're lucky, you'll save the world while you're at it!"_

_**"How am I supposed to save the world by myself!"**_

_"Ah, but you won't be by yourself. Silly girl. But, I speak too much as it is. Duck." _Courtney flinched. _"No, I mean, there's a duck in front of you." _The CIT watched a small duck waddle by. _"Okay, now, duck."_ The girl barely avoided a red dodgeball hurtling by her head, slamming so hard into the tree that it popped on impact.

"Ah!" DJ cried.

"Coward," Eva growled as she strolled to the front of the group. Another ball whistled towards the group; Eva deflected it effortlessly with one hand. "That all you got," the gym freak added as she soldiered on. A sound of clicking equipment echoed over the forest.

"As you wish," Chef replied from somewhere in the forest. A torrent of dodgeballs rained down, as if fired by a machine gun. Eva roared and proceeded to march up the mountain, punching balls aside as she did.

"Brickhouse, help me!" Eva cried out. DJ hemmed, trying to hang back.

"You heard the woman," Duncan shot back, shoving DJ to the front. DJ whimpered, haphazardly knocking the balls away the best he could.

"That's it!" Courtney cried. "Keep it up! Line up behind them and let's do this!" The Bass cowered behind the two large teens as they slowly worked their way up the slope. Eventually Chef's exasperated growl and the abrupt end of dodgeball fire proved that they had won the hour, if not the day.

"Good work, team!" Bridgette cheered, pumping her fist in the air.

"I ain't lettin' you twerps get no real meat… you'll eat gym mats and like it!" Chef roared. A sea of flames roared into existence around them.

"Yikes!" Katie squeaked.

"Oh, what do we do now!" Sadie wailed. "We'll never win now!"

"I'll bet that's the kill switch over there, too!" Bridgette grumbled.

_"Time to catch up on your reading, Court," _the voice chimed.

"I don't have the damn book," Courtney hissed to no one in particular.

"Huh?" Bridgette asked.

_"Look in front of you." _Courtney complied, and saw the book hovering in front of her. _"Quick, before you make a scene. The highlighted page. Now. To yourself."_

_**"Fine. What does this do."**_

_"That would be telling. Just relax and read." _Courtney sighed, and read the page. She felt something shudder inside her. _"Now walk."_

_**"Where."**_

_"Through the fire, ya knucklehead. Trust me."_ Courtney hesitantly reached through the fire… and felt nothing. _"Invincibility. Killer, huh."_

_**"Yow, I'll say," **_Courtney thought. She took a deep breath, and quickly went through the fire. She calmly hit the off switch, and the tongues of flame sank back to nothing.

"How did you…?!" Tyler began.

"Oh, there was a weak spot, so I kinda… rushed through so I could turn off the fire. Mind over matter, ya know?"

"Whatever you say, Princess," Eva shrugged. "Let's keep moving."

"Right, yes… we must be nearing the top, let's keep pushing," Courtney nodded to herself. The Bass sluggishly moved up the peak, but Bridgette needed a moment. Unlike the others, she had seen what Courtney did.

* * *

By the time the Bass were nearing the top of the mountain, they had clawed their way through a series of traps including tar, piranha pools, and falling trees. Duncan's climbing expertise had indeed paid off when he scaled the piranha tank to pull a rope bridge taut. Now they had a new problem; the Gophers were racing up the mountain alongside them without a single scratch on them. It was clear they hadn't been impeded in the slightest.

"Chris is pissing me off!" Duncan snapped.

"Worry about it later! We got bigger problems!" Courtney yelled, pointing ahead. Before them were Harold and Gwen, hanging in rusty cages over a sea of flames. "That psycho wasn't lying about the cages and fire!"

"Help! Gosh!" Harold rasped.

"Getting toasty up here!" Gwen added.

"Ah, hell, now what?" LeShawna asked the Gophers screeched to a stop.

"Give them wings and let them fly away!" Izzy chirped. "Fly away to freedom!"

"This really isn't the time," Courtney scolded the irreverent redhead. "Two of our fellow contestants are about to roast unless we get them out."

"Ah, c'mon," Izzy scolded her, snuggling up to the testy CIT. "Have some fun!"

"Look, Izzy, you need to calm down and focus…"

"You need to lighten up," Izzy replied, booping Courtney on the nose.

"Stop it."

"Stop it."

_**"Great, this is getting us nowhere,"**_ Courtney sighed. _**"Now she's copying me. And got me in a vice like hug. Where's the insane voice when I need it,"**_ the girl added as she looked to the heavens. She saw the cages suspended above, the rusted bottoms scorched and scarred from the heat beneath. The screws holding the floor to the bars looked ready to go at any moment. An idea began to form in her head. An idea so insane it just might work if the insane were brought into it.

"Izzy."

"Hi."

"Stop it."

"Stop it."

"Really. Stop it," Courtney urged, putting her hands on her hips.

"Really. Stop it," Izzy echoed, letting the CIT go to ape her movements.

"Just stop it, okay?" Courtney grumbled, grabbing the rope.

"Just stop it, okay?" Izzy copied, picking up the rope. Step by step, Courtney baited Izzy to take the rope, lasso the branch suspending the cages over the fire pit, and slowly pull them over to safety. Courtney locked eyes with Izzy, straining against the rope with all her might. Glancing briefly at the cages, she gave the branch a good yank and hoped for the best.

"Whoops!" Courtney said.

"Whoops!" Izzy copied, yanking herself. The cages popped open, and Courtney swiveled to catch Gwen just as Izzy caught Harold. "Oh, hello, Harold!"

"About time!" the boy snapped. Courtney heaved a huge sigh of relief.

_**"Wow, I actually did it. I used Chris' crappy lower bidder stuff against him. And nothing awkward came of—"**_

"Hi there." Courtney looked down to see Gwen with that same smirk from breakfast.

"Oh, uh, hi… Gwen…"

"My heroine."

"Seems it," Courtney sputtered. "I can put you down now, Iz put down Harold…"

"No, I'm good," Gwen replied, wriggling ever so slightly up against the CIT. Courtney's cheeks blazed red.

"Eep."

"Ah, darnit!" Chris whined, coming out of the forest. "Oh, I mean, ah, darnit! What an epic finale campers! However, with it being a draw, it looks like that was a null c—"

"What do you mean a draw?" Bridgette asked. "We caught Gwen."

"And we got Harold!" Trent added.

"Yeah, but, no one got their captive first, so—"

"That wasn't the goal," Eva interrupted. "You said 'whoever gets their captive, wins.' You said that."

"Well, it's your word against mine, campers, and as the grand high arbiter of awesome here, I'm afraid that…"

"Someone reach into my pocket," Courtney said. "Not you, Duncan." Bridgette pushed the juvie aside and pulled out Courtney's PDA. "Bridge, play the file entitled 'Just in case' for me in the audio notes?" Bridgette did so.

_ "Yeah. If my team wins… you replace Chef as our caterer with someone of my choice."_

_ "What?!"_

_ "Hmmm, I could be convinced... but, pray tell, what happens if the Gophers win?"_

_ "I leave the show."_

"_Deal." _A blur of fast forwarding. _"Ropes will be provided on top of the mountain, but that's about it for help. Whoever saves the other team's captive wins it all for their team. All right, have fun!"_

"Simply winning as opposed to winning first… Game, set, match, I believe," Noah smirked. Chris sputtered for a few seconds, his veins bulging before he calmed.

"…very well, campers, I suppose Courtney did win the bet, so Chef is out and her choice is in. If she'd tell me who it is…"

"Yeah. Bridge, pull up contact number seven and show it to Chris."

"But, Courtney, this is a—"

"Show him anyway." Bridgette shrugged and showed Chris. He scowled.

"Why are you showing me a lawyer? Do lawyers cook now?"

"No, that's my lawyer. And he's one of the best in the country. Just wanted to remind you that our deal was captured, on video, and on audio. Just in case you try anything." Chris clenched his jaw so hard that his teeth began to creak.

"All… right… campers… I will get the preferred choice of caterer by Courtney…"

"Le Bremner."

"Ooh, nice, one of the best restaurants in Montreal!" Gwen cooed. Chris twitched, biting one of his knuckles.

"All right… I'll call it now…" he wheezed, slowly stumbling down the mountain while still biting his knuckle.

"Well, kids, I guess that about wraps that up," Duncan smirked, following the host. The contestants slowly trickled down after him, leaving Courtney still cradling Gwen.

"So… you gonna walk, or…"

"Oh, my boots shrank from the heat of the fire and cage, and my feet are pinched inside, I could never get all the way down…"

"Gah," Courtney sighed, beginning to pick her way down the mountain. She felt Gwen snuggle up a little closer to her well-proportioned bust.

"Favorite musician," Gwen asked.

* * *

The mess hall broke into applause as Courtney entered a few hours later.

"Nice, Princess!" Duncan said while giving thumbs up.

"Awesome spread!" Owen said between bites. Justin winked at her.

"Hey, I was just trying to be nice," Courtney shrugged, picking up a tray.

"Keep it up and I might think you're trying to suck up to us," Geoff smiled.

"Nah, just wanted to team build is all…"

"Well, I'm not fooled," Heather huffed. "Everyone else may adore you, but it'll take more than lobster bisque to impress me."

"That's fine," Courtney said. She ignored Harold's own pointed look as she sat down with her usual suspects.

* * *

Chris glared at the sweater and Capris-clad form before him. There was something up with this bossy little creep, and he was going to find it come hell or high water.

* * *

"You came through for us, Princess. Nice calls," Eva said.

"Hey, I'm a CIT, what can I say."

"Well, I say you're the CIT I'd want in a tight spot." For the briefest second, Eva's mouth flicked up into a smile between bites of chicken.

_"Holy crap, I got her smiling,"_ Courtney thought to herself.

"You certainly came through the fire all right," Bridgette added with a note of suspicion.

"Yeah, like I said, weak spot, I went through it."

"Hmmm," Bridgette said simply before nibbling at her salad. Gwen squeezed in next to the blond surfer.

"Ah, a little slice of home… thanks, Courtney. You're a real trooper."

"Well, I certainly was after hauling your skinny butt down the mountain."

"You weren't complaining."

"I was huffing."

"But… not complaining," Gwen countered with that same, mysterious smirk. Courtney blushed and looked away.

_"Crud. She is flirting with me, isn't she. Insane Voice, help. I didn't know Gwen was… this way. What do I do."_

"Ah, I'm just fooling with you. I appreciate saving my neck back there. But… you may want to get some help for your eyes, they're discolored."

"They are?"

"Yeah, I wasn't gonna say anything, Courtney, but, they're kinda screwy," Bridgette added. Courtney looked confused.

"Well, it's probably from all the smoke and dust today, I probably got in some…" The CIT trailed off, as golden eyes with faded irises stared back.

_"…well, dammit."_


End file.
